Conquering the Fear
by DigiExpert
Summary: She was never afraid of heights until that fateful fall. Now, years later, someone else has decided she needs to learn to conquer that fear, starting with a simple roller coaster called the Volcano Crusher. Oneshot [Femslash]


**Some new femslash from me. I don't know where I got this idea from, but it came to me and now it's down on paper thanks to the encouragement of my girlfriend. One note: This fic follows the television version of the receiving of the ninjetti powers, meaning Kimberly did not sky dive as she did in the movie. Some of you may figure out why. **

**Disclaimer: Yeah, I own nothing.**

**Conquering the Fear**

She shifted from foot to foot lightly. The line of people stretched out before her, leading all the way to a covered section where she'd finally come face to face with it. If she had her choice, she wouldn't be in this line. She'd be far away, waiting in line for something that wasn't so high or created such an adrenaline rush. She didn't want this, especially not after all these years. A squeeze to her hand caused her face to glance upwards, right into the smiling face of her fiancé. She glanced away, swallowing back a bit of fear. She could do this. She'd been a gymnast before, done plenty of things that had used heights and adrenaline. _They were all before the fall_ she thought gloomily.

That fall hadn't seemed like much back then. Sure, she'd landed in the hospital. She'd pulled herself back together though, made herself strong enough to go to Florida to train for Pan Globals. Arriving in a new place was a gigantic change in itself, but as soon as she'd hit the gymnasium, she'd felt the familiarity of the place, the equipment, even the attitudes surrounding her. She was once again home at a gym, even though she'd never been there before. She'd been welcomed into the team with open arms and felt great about herself. She even put aside the homesickness to climb onto the balance beam. Disaster struck. She felt afraid for the first time and suddenly dizzy. The balance beam had been her best event, her favorite part of gymnastics. It had been her peace, her stress release. Now this. The next thing she knew she was staring up into the face of Coach Schmidt.

A small frown crossed her lips. That had begun a series of unfortunate events. Time and time again, she'd fall from the balance beam. After that first time, someone would always catch her. If she was lucky enough not to fall, she'd completely mess up her routine; it'd be sloppy or choppy or both. She felt like she was back at level two again as a little girl, awkward and unsure. This angered her. She wasn't supposed to be like this. That fall should have been nothing. It shouldn't have affected her like that. Now it had and she couldn't break herself of it. Night after night, hour after hour, she spent in the gym, working on the beam, trying to perfect routines that had once been so easy and so familiar.

Finally, she'd made a decision. The decision to retire before something even worse happened. It had been on Coach Schmidt's urging. He didn't want her to hurt herself even worst than her first accident. Without spotters, that could very easily happen. With spotters, she'd have major point reductions from the judges. Unless she could overcome her fear, she'd never be the gymnast she yearned to be. At any rate, it'd never happen before Pan Globals. They were less than a week away.

As the years had passed, the pain from her decision had lessened, but it had never fully gone away. That was the entire reason she was standing in this awful line at this very moment. She'd been coerced into it. She felt a squeeze to her hand and glanced up again. "Not going to run on me, are you?"

Kimberly shook her head. "I'd look a bit silly running away now. We're halfway there and have already spent over an hour in line. Plus, there are three teenage boys back there who keep looking at me. I'm sure they'd love to laugh if they saw me run."

Katherine looked behind her and stifled a laugh. "I think they'd chase after you. They seem infatuated you know. You still look like a teenager."

Kimberly scoffed. "It's not my fault I look so young."

Katherine leaned over and kissed Kimberly softly. "Now they are all bug eyed."

Kimberly rolled her eyes. "Must you torment every teenage boy that way?"

Katherine grinned. "Oh but it's fun. You know, I never knew it was so nice to crush a young boy's dreams of a hot, sexy--"

Kimberly leaned up on tiptop and put a finger to her lips quickly. "You shush!" Her face was a bright red.

"It was only in fun!" protested Katherine.

"It's not my idea of fun when you've a bunch of teenagers and kids surrounding you, some with parents," hissed Kimberly.

Katherine simply smiled and wrapped her arm around Kimberly's waist. She did steal another glance back at the boys, who made not so nice gestures toward her. _The best man already won_ she thought. _Or should I say woman?_

Eventually the couple had made their way to the front. Katherine had decided the only proper way to ride a roller coaster was to sit in the very front car. It was a longer wait, but Katherine knew it'd be the only way. She glanced down at the couple's hands; Kimberly's hand had hers in a death grip. She needed a bit of calming. Katherine leaned over and whispered. "Love…I'm right beside you. I'll hold your hand the entire time and I promise I won't let go. Nothing will hurt you with me by your side." That got a small smile out of her girl.

"_Welcome to the Volcano Crusher. As the gates open, please keep arms and legs clear. Place all belongings in the wooden cubbies provided…"_

Katherine took the small bag from her back and crossed the tracks to place it in a cubby. She returned to the car, and took her seat. Kimberly was already beside her and pulled the lap bar down as soon as Katherine was seated. The coaster they had chosen was one that did not include loops, but it did include a series of sudden twists and turns, and a steep drop from the top of a volcano, which was the very first thing they encountered. Attendants quickly made their way from the front to the back, checking the lap bars and making sure each and every one was securely in place.

"_All systems clear. Please enjoy your ride."_

Clanks of metal were heard and the train began its slow crawl, speeding up some before it reached the large hill, the one that led into the volcano. Katherine felt Kimberly's hand searching for hers in the darkness. She grabbed Kimberly's hand and intertwined their fingers together. Kimberly's grip was tight and Katherine bit her lip. The light grew brighter as they drew closer to the top. Kimberly turned to look at Katherine. "I'm going to kill you after this!" she yelled over the noise of the tracks.

Katherine smiled and felt the train begin to suddenly change angles. Now came the steep descent and the fun of the entire coaster. She began to scream and heard Kimberly's yells over her own. After that, things were a blur as they made their way through the numerous twists and turns and over a few smaller hills. Finally they returned to the station. Katherine ran her fingers through her wind-tossled hair and looked over at Kimberly as the lap bars were released. Kimberly appeared to be in shock. Katherine tugged gently at her hand. "Come on love. It's time to get off."

Kimberly let Katherine lead her away from the coaster and down the ramp. Photos were being shown at the exit gate and the two stopped to look. Kimberly still didn't say a word. Katherine began to get nervous. She had coaxed Kimberly into joining her, but she didn't think it'd cause Kimberly to stop talking to her. Katherine glanced over the new photos that had just appeared on the screen, the ones from their ride. She found their car. The pictures had been taken on the descent down the volcano. She couldn't help but laugh at Kimberly's reaction. There was a giant grin on her face, yet she still appeared to be in terror.

"Can you believe that?" Kimberly asked.

"Believe what?" asked Katherine, suddenly worried.

"How crazy that was!" Kimberly laughed. "I was so scared, but it was so much fun at the same time. I can't believe I actually rode that thing."

"So I don't have the couch tonight?" asked Katherine.

"Haven't decided yet," remarked Kimberly, smiling.

"Well if I'm already in trouble, does that mean I can coax you to go on a coaster that has loops?"

Kimberly lightly punched her arm. "Don't push it or you'll be on the couch for more than a night."

Katherine whined. "Please?"

"No."

Katherine leaned over and kissed Kimberly's cheek. "See what fears you can overcome with the right person?"

"One thing's for certain…I certainly get enough thrills from you, Katherine," replied Kimberly with a laugh.

**And so it ends. Please leave a review, let me know what you think.  
**


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